This is a cracking debut, with a convincingly brutal class system, a subversion of the ‘chosen one’ trope, slow-burn romance and political intrigues.

The worldbuilding was exquisite. Once of my favourite things was the magic - it uses blood runes, but it’s not a dramatic slicing-the-palm blood sacrifice, it’s a well constructed system that includes education stratification (only the highest class learn how to use them) and a sort of functional jewellery that taps into the veins of the hand and allows steady access to blood for writing the runes.

The characters were engaging and complex. Sylah carries the trauma of a brutal childhood, her grief ineffectively managed by the drugs that her addiction to is slowly destroying her body. She is so brittle but so strong. Anoor’s sheltered and privileged but emotionally neglectful upbringing left her determined to do the right thing, although she often doesn’t know what that is. Half the time I just wanted to scoop her into a hug. Their romance was a sweet point in the generally dark atmosphere of this book.

I had previously gotten a few chapters into The Final Strife and then forgotten about it - I'm so glad that I returned to it, and that I stuck it out past what is a slightly uneven starting section. This book takes the first 25% or so to really hit its stride - everything picked up for me the moment Anoor entered the narrative. I'm not usually bothered by protagonists who are closed off and perhaps less likeable, but Anoor was a literal ray of sunshine in comparison. There is a sapphic storyline in this, but it doesn't emerge until much later in the book - I'm hoping it will be explored more as the trilogy unfolds, as I was very invested in it. I was very much less interested in the straight relationship in the earlier sections of the book.
Integral to a fantasy series such as this, the world building here is really interesting - I like the way that extra sections of history or lore are slowly revealed as the plot continues. The plot itself isn't always the most surprising, but the world itself is certainly interesting enough to keep up the intrigue.
I will definitely be picking up the next in this series, and would hope to see the political side of things examined more fully.

Thank you to Harper Collins for sending me an arc in exchange for a review!

The Final Strife is a story we’ve read in many other fantasy and dystopian books. The wealthy live in palaces enjoying a soft and comfortable life, feasting on the labours of those demonised by society. Yet, the world-building is African-Arabic inspired and the atmosphere invoked is uniquely immersive and rooted in culture.

At the top are the red-blooded Embers, then the Dusters, blue-blooded, still treated with contempt, but at least they have a better life than the clear-blooded Ghostings who’s hands and tongues are chopped off by the Embers to keep them subservient.

”Blood is everywhere. It pours from the trees and from the backs of the Dusters who mine them. Even the Ember overseers drip blood, but only from thair whips."

The three perspectives we follow are strong young women, hotheaded and stubborn in their own way in their different wakes of life, each having different colour blood.

This felt like a combination of many different fantasies I have read and I loved the effect! This never felt repetitive or a copy - there were nuances to each character that makes them stand out - addiction, disability, abuse. Not to mention, the story never follows the way you would expect it to.

I would recommend this to fans of Red Queen and Children of Blood and Bone.

I just want to say that I am still processing what this book did to me... Not because I found it particularly emotionally traumatizing, but so much of this read was just okay until we got to the last ten percent or so and suddenly the book was really something that I was interested in.

El-Arifi does a lot of interesting things here. I want to applaud them by using blood magic in a way that felt inventive. I'm sure that out there in the universe exists another book where people use their blood to make runes that do magic, but what I was more impressed with here was story with blood magic present that didn't come off as self harm-y every time the characters went use their magic for something. It was also nice to see queer normative society. As I said, the story that we get at the end is the story that I was interested in, but the bulk of the book had very little to do with that storyline.

In particular, the first part of this book was rough to get through. I wouldn't call anything that happens infodumpy... For the most part El-Arifi utilizes the "the protagonist and the reader learn things together" trope in a successful way. Some of the information does feel like it could have been massaged into the narrative a little better, and maybe in the final version of the book things are. Also the entire subplot of Sylah being a drug addict? I think it's nice to have another drug addict main character in a fantasy world to join the likes of Rin and Lan, but.... here... the self-medicating made them first couple of chapters particularly hard to get through

This is an epic, I have to keep page turning, I don’t want this to end, fantasy book. Isn’t it strange how after a few paragraphs you know a book is going to be good? For me the first words drew me in totally and told me this was book going to be an entertaining brilliant fantasy fiction. And I wasn’t disappointed, until I finished the book. But not to worry as this is a trilogy and the next instalment is sure to come soon! Thank you to Harper Collins publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

A fantastical story with incredible world building, revisiting the genre with a fresh stack of monsters and magicks, this world is like nothing I have read before.
Reminds me of « The throne of the crescent moon » by Saladin Ahmed, but goes beyond it by thoroughly revisiting all the tropes.

The Final Strife is a really good story, with lots of interesting characters. I also enjoy that the narrative skips over some of the boring bits, like waiting between tournaments!

A beautiful story of strength and courage against adversity.

In this world where women, musuwa (a third gender; non-binary) and men hold equal positions, and sexuality is not an issue, there is an a equally cruel inequality- of blood.

Syrah, Hassa and Anoor’s lives are entangled in the desperate fight against the brutal segregation of those of different coloured blood- red, blue or clear. Although they are each of a different colour blood they are ultimately fighting for the same cause.

The world in which this story is set is a rich amalgamation of dystopian post apocalyptic and traditional West Africa- I loved it. I also found the slowly developing relationships and revelations of the past kept me gripped and desperate to read the next book. I am so glad to know it is to be a trilogy!

Many thanks to Saara El-Arifi, Netgalley and Harper Collins for the Arc.

Loved this book ! It took me a while to be in but I can recommend it’s pretty cool.
Love the main character too

A beautiful read, with fantastic story building and character development. I loved the worlds politics, and couldn’t put it down. Such a good read!

This book is incredible! The pacing made the book go by so fast, and the characters are all full of depth. The magic system is very intriguing. I also enjoyed the unique setting, which had influences from cultures not typically depicted in fantasy novels. I highly recommend this book to fans of The Poppy War Trilogy by RF Kuang and The Broken Earth Trilogy by NK Jemisin.

Saara El-Arifi is clearly one of the brightest new voices in the fantasy genre. I can't wait for Book Two in this series, The Battle Drum!

This was really well written. The world building had a good amount of complexity, but it was clearly told so it wasn't confusing. I'm looking forward to the second book and finding out what happens next. I'm particularly intrigued by one thing that came out of nowhere right towards the end! The only thing stopping me from giving it a five star is that it felt really slow throughout and seemed very long generally. I think a faster pace would have helped keep me more engaged and want to keep picking it back up more.

What a masterful debut. This was gorgeous with intricate world building and compelling characters. I was swept away in this breath taking novel - I adored it.

Sometimes new fantasy books don't always hit the mark and are a little disappointing compared to the high praise I've been influenced into thinking about from online reviews. However I went into this with zero expectations, I didn't even know what it was about until I saw the author speak at Cymera, and I loved it! The world and the magic felt familiar yet interesting, I liked that it was a world in which queerness wasn't questioned and accepted, which isn't common in a lot of fantasy so it was refreshing. I liked the dynamic of our main protagonists and how they learned from each other. This was simply an enjoyable new fantasy, whose sequel I am really looking forward to.

A chosen one who DIDN’T save the world
- A cruel and divided Empire
- Friends To Lovers
- LQBTQ+ and DISABILITY rep.

Honestly, I don’t know when I’ll stop talking about this book this is a GOD TIER fantasy read. Everyone once in a while a book feels like it was created for you, this is one of those books. Saara El-Arfifi has become an auto-buy author easily standing alongside Samantha Shannon, Brandon Sanderson and NK Jemisin and that is not something I’d ever say lightly.

This book is just phenomenal. Saara’s world-building will draw you in and transport you into the world she has created. Her characters will make you feel things and her plots will have you hooked.

This book has my heart especially with natural inclusiveness with both lgbtq+ and disability rep. Not only that but we get to see all the characters navigate the world in a their own way.

Expect magic, action, adventure, suspense, romances and a plot that will keep you hooked. All with political intrigue and the promise of change on the horizon. This book both allows pure escapism, whilst highlighting the reality of all kinds of discrimination in our own world.

Honestly, this is one of the best debuts I've read in a long time. Saara is truly a piece of magic that has been brought to life to produce the most fantastic fantasy I've ever read. I am SO excited for the next instalment.
This is an epic fantasy that every fantasy lover needs to read

It took me a while to read this book but boy was it worth it!

I really enjoyed the first book in this series and can't wait to read the next. The characters were richly developed, the relationships complex and believable and the world well thought out both easy to imagine and also unspeakably bleak and brutal at times. I didn't see most of the twists coming even though the clues had been placed throughout.
I did think the world building for the first part of the book took quite a while, but once it got going it was gripping.

An engaging fantasy world with a morally grey main character who you will grow to love.

Sylah was raised for one thing - to bring down the red-blooded ruling class, and give power to the blue-blooded working class who have raised her. However, when everything goes wrong, she ends up in the slums fighting for sport and slowly giving in to her addiction. Until a drunken encounter with the woman she was replaced by changes her life in ways she could never have imagined.

I love the world that the author has created in this novel. The world building is phenomenal and I felt like I was told everything I needed to know about the magic, caste system, and history without being overwhelmed with too much exposition.
The characters were engaging, if not particularly likeable at times, and I loved seeing their arcs as they developed through the story.
The magic was similarly intriguing and I’m excited to learn more about it in the next book in the series, which I will definitely be buying!

Overall, this was a really engaging fantasy novel. I can’t wait to see where the series goes next!

I could not get into the book. The prose wasn't as good as I was expecting. And it's been too long and I find myself not interested in reading this book anymore. I apologize.

And still I can hear the drum beat, as another night falls and another story is going to be told accompanied by the drums of the storyteller.

This is an amazing novel that takes us deep into a hierarchical and brutal society where everything seems corrupt and seems to get even more so, the moment you dig deeper.

And yet, lives have got to be lived and obstacles have to be overcome.

I loved how the author brought the three main POVs, their back stories and their connectedness together.

I am looking forward to see how the story unfolds in book two.